Misery Loves Company
by Klutzygirl33
Summary: Ziva and Delilah are both out of the country. Tony and Tim wallow in misery about being in the same boat together.


**I don't own NCIS and never will. No copyright infringement intended.**

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Since Delilah had recently left the country – just like Ziva - Tony decided to ask Tim to come over to his apartment so they could bond over the fact they were alone (he phrased it differently, but Tim understood what he meant). Tony slapped his back and smiled at his friend. "We can get drunk and do whatever we want! How great is that?"

A concerned Tim eyed him warily. He missed the hell out of Delilah, but he wasn't sure if he was up to spending an evening with Tony. But then again, he knew what he was going through and could be helpful. He finally agreed to go and sighed. "I don't want to be hung over in the morning, so let's just stick to beer or something that isn't strong."

Tony didn't skip a beat. "I can do that. How does eight tonight sound?" He was thrilled it was the weekend and they didn't have to worry about work.

"Great. I'll see you then!" Tim watched as Tony enthusiastically walked away and just shook his head. At least he wouldn't drown in loneliness tonight – that particular bout of self-pity could be packed away for another day, something he was fine with.

After making sure everything was taken care of at home, Tim slipped into comfortable clothes and headed over to Tony's apartment. Tony grinned when he opened the door and saw him. "Hey! I set up a movie to watch tonight and there's plenty of beer in the fridge. We won't have to worry about a thing."

"Great. Thanks, Tony." He sat down on the couch and smiled when Tony handed him a beer.

Tony pressed play on the remote and settled in to watch one of his favorite movies. "Has Delilah settled in yet?" He liked her and Tim together – they seemed like a perfect match. He hoped this long-distance thing worked out for them.

He nodded. "She loves it over there, but is homesick. We talk as much as we can, but not enough. We're determined to make this work, though. I love her, and I want to be with Delilah when she comes home. But this is a great opportunity and I'm happy for her. She deserves this!" They had weathered the explosion and the paralysis – a long-distance relationship was nothing in comparison to the horror they had experienced a few months earlier.

"And you're sure she's coming back?" Tony knew their situations were different, but he had to make sure. He didn't want Tim (or Delilah) to get hurt.

He nodded. "Yeah, we're sure. And Tony, stop worrying. I know Ziva will come back eventually – she just needs to find herself right now. You two love each other and this won't break you. I know you miss her, and I bet you she feels the exact same way."

Tony picked at the paper on his bottle. "I haven't exactly been subtle these past few months, have I?"

Tim laughed. "Not really. I've been worried, but you got through the worst of it. And now we're going to help each other in our time of misery. We just have to keep reminding ourselves and make the other believe that Ziva and Delilah will come back. They're not gone forever."

"I like the way you think." Tony took a sip of his beer and turned his attention back to the movie. He still felt a physical ache every time he thought of Ziva, but it was starting to hurt less. And he was grateful to have someone with him who was in nearly the exact same position.

Tim focused his eyes on the TV and tried not to think about Delilah. He wanted to marry her someday and hoped she felt the same way about him. "So, how's your friends with benefits thing working out?" He had been curious about this and dying to find out what was going on there for days.

He shrugged. "It was just a three night stand and then it was over. I'm not really looking for something serious right now." Tony had to do something so he wouldn't think about Ziva, one of the main reasons he had decided to seek out sex. It hadn't worked out too well.

"Ah, got it." Tim wasn't surprised – Tony had grown up a lot lately and had only fallen back on his immature persona as a defense mechanism. He hoped it didn't last much longer.

"What are your plans for the rest of the weekend? Planning on relaxing at home?" That's exactly what Tony wanted to do and he hoped it happened. He just needed a break from their cases lately.

Tim nodded. "Yeah, that's about it. My weekends will be boring until Delilah comes back. And I don't mind waiting for her at all. This will be worth it. Besides, focusing on her career is a good move." He missed the hell out of her, but that wasn't surprising.

"I like the way you think." Tony was just glad he didn't have to drown in self-pity alone anymore. He felt a little guilty about it, but Tim didn't have to know.

"Thanks. So you want to order a pizza? I'm starving."

Tony lit up. "Sure. Let me just go find a menu and then we can order." He paused the movie and then hurried to the kitchen to look in his drawers. When he came back with the menu, he and Tim looked through it together. It took the two of them about ten minutes to make a decision, but then they called for delivery and returned to their attention to the movie.

When their pizza finally arrived, both were thrilled. "We made a good choice," Tim murmured.

Tony nodded. "Yeah, we did!"

"To being by ourselves!" he cried. Tony laughed, but proceeded to clink his bottle against Tim's anyway. Then the men dug into the pizza and finished the movie they had been watching for the past few hours.

Tim went home feeling much better – he and Tony met up several more times to wallow about Delilah and Ziva being gone – and was happy he had someone to confide in. Turns out that misery really did love company.


End file.
